Sunshine Coast Trail

The Sunshine Coast Trail (SCT) is a 180 km wilderness hiking route on the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia, running between Sarah Point (north, Desolation Sound) and Saltery Bay (south, Jervis Inlet). It’s built as a hut-to-hut corridor with a series of first-come, first-sleep backcountry huts along the way.

Most long thru-hike plans cover about 9–12 days. That pacing works because the route is designed for multi-day travel with overnight hut stops rather than day-hiking between trailheads.

The trail traverses a wide mix of terrain types across the qathet Regional District, moving through coastal shorelines and creek/lake country, old-growth forest, and up to higher mountain terrain; the route covers roughly 154.8 km.

A key operational feature is that the hut network reduces how much gear you must carry: you can travel without a tent because hut beds are the primary shelter, though bringing a tent as backup can make sense for peak periods.

There are multiple entry/exit points along the corridor for shorter trips, with documented access at places such as Lund/Sliammon-area connections and the Saltery Bay side. The SCT’s endpoints themselves (Sarah Point and Saltery Bay) support planning for full traverses.

Reaching Powell River (the main hub for SCT logistics) typically requires ferry travel from Vancouver: Horseshoe Bay to Langdale and Earl’s Cove to Saltery Bay, with payment once going up and once on the return; the route then uses local transport to reach trailheads like Sarah Point.

The SCT began with the Powell River Parks and Wilderness Society initiative (qPAWS) in the early 1990s and was completed as a continuous trail in 2000; wilderness hut construction followed starting in 2009. Volunteer and partner involvement remains part of ongoing hut and trail maintenance.

In planning, treat the route as exposed backcountry travel: the huts and trail provide the backbone of the trip, but you still need to account for long distances between services, weather sensitivity typical of the Sunshine Coast, and how you’ll handle hut capacity during busy periods.

More information: Official website, Official website, Wikipedia